Darby Creek protections urged in development

Friday

Nov 18, 2011 at 12:01 AMNov 18, 2011 at 12:20 PM

As the plan for concentrated development near Big Darby Creek makes the rounds among local governments, some environmental advocates say officials must take stronger steps to ensure the ecologically diverse stream is not harmed. The Big Darby Accord Advisory Panel conditionally approved the plan last month, pending revisions in the storm-water-management plan by jurisdictions or revisions in the state's storm-water permit.

As the plan for concentrated development near Big Darby Creek makes the rounds among local governments, some environmental advocates say officials must take stronger steps to ensure the ecologically diverse stream is not harmed.

The Big Darby Accord Advisory Panel conditionally approved the plan last month, pending revisions in the storm-water-management plan by jurisdictions or revisions in the state’s storm-water permit.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency approved a storm-water permit in 2006. The five-year permit expired in October, and the agency is renewing it.

“The new permit needs to focus on better managing the storm-water runoff,” said Anthony Sasson, freshwater conservation coordinator for the Nature Conservancy in Ohio. He said he is particularly concerned about the fate of Hellbranch Run, a Darby tributary. Ditches that run within and near the proposed town-center area feed into the Hellbranch.

“The Hellbranch is under a lot of stress given the amount of development that may occur,” Sasson said. “I don’t expect the Hellbranch to survive as a high-quality stream with rare species.”

The new permit won’t look much different from the current one, although more protective terms could be included, said Ohio EPA spokeswoman Erin Strouse.

“The general storm-water permit goes a long way to protect the watershed from further degradation, but it does not hold developers responsible for improving the watershed by correcting/addressing issues that they did not create,” Strouse wrote in an e-mail.

The agency also is considering a separate, individual permit tailored to the needs of the area, Strouse wrote.

Sasson said officials must preserve as much of the natural flow of water in the tributaries as possible, to protect water quality and control the amount of water flowing into the Darby. But Sasson acknowledged that attempts to control runoff could alter the town-center plan.

The Columbus City Council has scheduled a first reading for the master plan on Dec. 5. Franklin County commissioners are to take it up on Dec. 13. The Franklin County Planning Commission approved it last week.

John Tetzloff of the Darby Creek Association said his concerns will be eased if the jurisdictions approve the same conditions that the Big Darby Accord group approved.

The council will consider the plan with the conditions, said Erin Miller, the city’s environmental steward.

The town-center plan comes out of the Big Darby Accord that local governments, including the city of Columbus and Franklin County, approved in 2006 to halt unchecked development near the creek. The Darby harbors 37 rare and endangered species of mussels and fish.

The idea is that the Darby watershed could be better preserved if development were concentrated rather than spread out. Most of the proposed town center of about 2,500 acres sits between I-70 and Rt. 40 in western Franklin County. The plan identifies locations for wetlands and natural areas to slow and filter runoff.

A market study now anticipates a little more than 3,700 homes for the area, said James Schimmer, Franklin County’s planning and economic-development director. It also sees 610,000 square feet of office and retail space and a 100-room hotel.

Officials estimate that it will take 30 to 40 years for the town center to build out.

Since 2008, Columbus and Hilliard officials and those at Metro Parks have spent more than $5 million to restore sections of the Hellbranch and Clover Groff Run, which both feed into the Darby.

The Ohio EPA has loaned or granted more than $26million since 2003 for stream restoration and conservation protection in the watershed.

To review the plan, go to www.bigdarbyaccord.org and click on the “master plan” link.